History of Tax Discovery
In 2005, Deborah Cameron and Mark Husted approached Bryan Hapeman and his organization to develop software to make it possible to assist in the collection Real Estate Taxes for their newly obtained positions. Tax Tracker was created that could be installed on the computer and work with their needs.
In 2006, David, Bryan's younger brother, was given the product to upgrade, maintain and sell to start Hapeman Software Solutions. Immediately, David saw some inherent flaws with the original design and began working on how to stabilize and resell the product. He saw also that the database holding the collector's information needed processes for Disaster Recovery and Support above and beyond the usual "phone call".
In 2008, the application moved the data from the collector's laptop to a centralized server so that the data could be automatically backed up and archived. Additional flexibility added for collectors throughout Pennsylvania.
In 2013, due to changes in government policies and the loss of clients, Hapeman Software has to close its doors but David keep the program running on his own time.
In 2014, Tax Tracker was rebranded as Tax Discovery. The software was re-written with the plan toward a concept that David termed "device independence". This concept was relatively new to the IT community and we knew it was going to take time for the technology to be affordable and available. Cloud technology was very new and untested, but we knew that this was "the future", so the plan was to gradually start making changes.
In 2019, Tax Discovery was redesigned in preparation for Tax Discovery On Line. There were two products that worked together. One was downloaded to the collector's computer and the other was on line.
In 2020, COVID hits! Tax Discovery development comes to a halt. David felt that without the ability for the collectors to come together to talk through and work changes, the best thing to do was to wait for the issue to pass. Unfortunately, that was no for 2 more years!
In 2022, development begins again and over the past 2 years, David finds a way to quickly change the Windows program into an on-line program. In June of 2022, Tax Discovery On Line (TDOL) is established. The engine of the program is established and functions almost identical to the traditional windows version that the collectors had been used to using.
In 2023, TDOL is completed and the Windows application shut down. Device independence has been achived. TDOL can be used on any device (PC, Mac, Phones, Tablets) that have an internet connection. No software required. Older machines, new machines and upgrades are completely seemless.
The future
So, where do we go from here. Technology never stops and neither can we. Tax Discovery has been created with full functionality for integration within any Taxing Authority, County systems and School Districts to get information passed to and from our systems bringing speed and accuracy to all.
Documentation, videos, training, online courses ....................
The next versions will incorporate the mobile technologies to make it even more flexible for collectors to not be "tied to the desk". Work from anywhere and not need anything more than a phone.
Work with Financial institutions in getting tax payers the ability to pay their taxes on line and register the payment immediately within TDOL and deposit into the collector's account.
The only thing not possible is that not dreamed ............................
A note from our developer
Thank you for taking the time to learn more about what we are doing.
Tax Tracker/Tax Discovery has become a "passion" of mine. It was my first program and always be very close to my heart. The collectors and their contributions is what made this project work. My job was to understand the tax collection process and then write software to make it easier.
I have spent my life integrating programs. Just as two people talk on the phone, integration is the ability of two applications to talk to each other.
I am in my 50's and plan to continue this application for years to come. It would be my final desire to have this one program be the standard that other competitors attempt to achieve. I pride myself in the fact that my clients are also my friends. I work with them constantly to make improvements not only in the tax collecting process but in the knowledge and communication of the community. 20 years ago, I knew nothing about real estate taxes in Pennsylvania and now that the program is functional anywhere in the state, I would love to see it take off so that I can work on this project full time and possibly get the program to other states. The competition is stiff. There are companies that are larger and with "staff". But, my goal is to show that a big company cannot move as fast as an individual with clients that are engaged and invested. This is not about money for me. It is about fulfilling a need and doing what comes naturally to me and what I love.
I cannot wait to hear from you and we would love to have you as a part of our co-op!